TOP LOCAL ORANGE COUNTY NEWS STORIES on the WEB

Monday, June 30, 2008

13 Annual City of Orange Third of July CelebrationOrange will celebrate the Red, White, and Blue with the 13th Annual Third of July Celebration at Orange Unified’s Fred Kelly Stadium at El Modena High School. The event will include a patriotic music program performed by the Orange Community Master Chorale of Santiago Canyon College and a fireworks show. The fun starts at 4 pm with interactive games, kid’s activities and vendor booths. The musical program and fireworks display begins at 8 pm.

The tickets are $5 for children and adults (under 2 years old is free). Advance tickets are at the Orange Community Services Department, 230 East Chapman.Tickets will also be available at the gate the day of the event. For more information please call 714-744-7267.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT FRED KELLY STADIUM: Fred Kelly Stadium has synthetic turf and an all weather track. There is blanket seating only on the turf. Wheeled items (such as strollers, wagons, etc.) are permitted in the designated areas only. The following are not permitted on the field: lawn chairs, food, drink, gum, popcorn, sunflower seeds, hard-soled and high-heeled shoes. Cooperation with these rules is strictly enforced to keep the turf in competitive condition.

Canyon Hills Community Council’s Star Spangled 4thA whole day of activities in Anaheim Hills is planned for this year’s Star Spangled 4th Celebration. The day starts at 5:30 am with the Firecraker 5/10K Run and 2K Walk and Health Fair at Orange Unified’s Canyon High School until 10 AM. The annual Pancake Breakfast is in the Canyon H.S. Cafeteria from 8am until 10:30 am. The Yankee Doodle Dog Show is at 10:00 am, also at Canyon H.S.

Peralta Park serves as the food and game center between 12:30 pm and 8:45 pm with live entertainment starting at 6:00 pm.

The Fourth of July Parade starts at 3:00 pm beginning at Canyon H.S. The over 100 entries will proceed west on Santa Ana Canyon Road and end at Pinney. Finally, the Fireworks Show starts at 9:00 pm at Peralta Park.For more information CLICK ON: STAR SPANGLED

Orange Park Acres 4th of July Parade Orange Park Acres will host its annual July 4th Parade in Orange Park Acres from 9 a.m. – 11 p.m. on the Fourth of July. For more information please call (714) 545-5145.

Metro TALKis a community service of Orange Net News

Ecast on the INTERNET COMMUNITY GROUP i/))) cgA 21st Century Communications SystemProduced by the

Friday, June 27, 2008

Dreier headed to Orange Unified as Greeley, Colorado splits over her performance

The results of a Greeley Tribune readers poll and a Friday June 27th Tribune editorial showed the deep split in the community over Greeley District 6 Superintendent Renae Dreier who by all indications will become the next Orange Unified Superintendent on July 22nd, three days after her 59th birthday.

The Friday editorial titled Dreier has been good for district , acknowledged the controversial tenure from the very beginning:

“There's no question that Renae Dreier has been controversial in her brief tenure as Greeley-Evans School District 6's superintendent. More debatable is the question of whether District 6 is a better school district than when she took over in 2005.”

The editorial praises Dreier for bringing change to District 6 and helping move it off the state “academic watch list” by moving toward a standard based curriculum. These moves of change the Tribune editorial contends helped contribute to Dreier’s critics. The editorial also acknowledges the high degree of Dreier’s unpopularity in the community:

“Does Dreier have the full support of all in the community and, in particular, teachers? Depending on who you talk to, the answer is "not quite" or a resounding ‘no way’.”

The editorial surmises that Dreier’s clear unpopularity in many circles of District 6 comes from her failure to build community consensus:

“Wherever you stand on that issue, it seems fair to say that Dreier hasn't been as effective as she could have been at building a consensus in the district and the community to support the right course of action”.

The split in the Greeley community appears more overwhelming in the reader’s poll the Tribune conducted over Thursday and Friday on its revamped website. Although the new site did experience technical difficulties for part of the day on Thursday, by noon Greeley time on Friday almost 700 people had chimed in on the unscientific poll.

The poll asked:Do you believe Greeley-Evans School District 6 has improved under Renae Dreier's leadership?The results of the over 700 votes were overwhelmingly negative. As of noon Friday Greeley time the results were: • NO: 71.12% • YES: 14.08%• Don’t Know: 10.49%• Maybe: 4.31%

With an OUSD Facilities Bond in the works, several OUSD schools still labeled by the state as “underperforming”, and continuing state budget deficits impacting OUSD’s budget, hopefully Dreier has learned some lessons about the importance of uniting a community.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Poll on Superintendent Renae Dreier

Poll on Superintendent Renae Dreier The Greeley Tribune is conducting a poll on Superintendent Renae Dreier, the expected new Orange Unified School District who will appointed to the OUSD position on July 22nd. The poll was suggested this week by a Tribune reader in a comment on a story about Dreier on the paper’s website. Similar in format to polls conducted by newspapers across the country (including the Orange County Register), the unscientific poll asks readers their opinion on if Greeley District 6 schools have improved under Dreier. The poll question is:

Do you believe Greeley-Evans School District 6 has improved under Renae Dreier's leadership?

Readers are given four options: No; Yes; Don’t know; Maybe.

On-going poll results can be accessed with the link below. Once the link is CLICKED, it can be REFRESHED for up to date numbers, or re-CLICKED later to get up-to-date- on going numbers. The finished poll results will be available on Friday.

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Metro VIEWS: An open letter to the OUSD Trustees from a member of the Greeley Parent Advocacy Group

AN OPEN LETTER TO THE OUSD TRUSTEES FROM A MEMBER OF THE GREELEY PARENT ADVOCACY GROUP

"I have been preparing myself for superintendency for years,"-Renae Dreier, upon her promotion from middle school principal to superintendent in Redding, CA (Record Searchlight August 11, 2001)

Dear Members of the OUSD Board of Education,

Although I hope Dr. Dreier will indeed leave our school district I also feel obligated to caution you about her. There have been many disappointments under Dr. Dreier's "leadership". We drafted a vote of no confidence but never submitted it.

Ultimately it is my sincere hope you will do what's in your students’ best overall interests and not let Dr. Dreier dictate curriculum without sufficient recess and play in kindergarten classes.

Below a sampling of community comments after teachers in our district were surveyed. Teachers dared not openly share their concerns out of fear of repercussions so a number of us read comments on their behalf. You can access some here: Teacher Comments District 6 Board Meeting 10/23/06

or visit the Coalition for Better Education and scroll almost all the way down to the area labeled:Read some comments from District 6 school teachersDistrict Six Board Meeting October 23, 2006 (with links to all comments from District 6 Elementary, Middle and High School teachers).

The HEARING OF PERSONS included:

* John Reimers – Expressed concern over the High School Diploma program cutting the number of students and not offering any program to students who dropped out who are now older.

On Wednesday June 25th, the Greeley Tribune reported on the visit by three Orange Unified Trustees to Greeley District 6 Schools. The three OUSD Trustees, Wes Poutsma, Kathy Moffat, and Kimberly Nichols, made the trip to Greeley as the final part of an interview process aimed at hiring Greeley District 6 Superintendent Renae Dreier to replace retiring OUSD Superintendent Dr. Thomas Godley. The OUSD Trustee’s trip during the current budget crisis has been controversial. Some Greater Orange Community members have dubbed the budget crisis trip , the Dreier Junket because it appears that Dreier’s hiring is a forgone conclusion, complete with a special reception already in the works for a July 22 Special Board meeting.

In a telephone interview with the Tribune, Victoria Webber, Executive Secretary to OUSD Superintendent Dr. Godley told the Tribune that while aware of local community objections, OUSD has no comment on the community's objection to the trip. Webber also confirmed to the Tribune the information reported on by Orange Net News about the July 22nd meeting to hire Dreier was correct. The Tribune story reports that Webber stated the meeting was just preparation and not a foregone conclusion. Webber told the Tribune that the purpose of the OUSD Trustee trip was to check out the surroundings to make sure everything they heard is accurate. The report also states that the reporter had telephoned both Poutsma and Dreier, but neither one returned the telephone calls.

The Tribune also interviewed District 6 Board President Bruce Broderius who met with the OUSD Board delegation. The report states that Broderius had a detailed conversation about Dreier’s character and how she response to the pressures of the job. Broderius reported that the resignation of Greeley Central H.S. Principal Mark Rangel over a work-time extra-martial affair did come up in the conversations with the OUSD Trustees.

Former Greeley Chamber of Commerce leader Vicki Sears told the Tribune that she was present during the meeting of Greeley officials and the OUSD Board members and that the comments were positive. Sears stated she had a gut feeling that OUSD would hire Dreier.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

OUSD Trustees visit Greeley as the local work day Sex Scandal widens

SPECIAL REPORTA news service of Orange Net News /O/N/N/

OUSD Trustees visit Greeley as thelocal work day Sex Scandal widens

Orange Unified School District Trustees are on tour in Greeley, Colorado to “investigate” their choice for the next OUSD Superintendent, Greeley Colorado District 6 Superintendent Dr. Dreier. The OUSD trustees “investigation” trip, dubbed The Dreier Junket by community tax watchdogs, is taking place despite retiring OUSD Superintendent Dr. Thomas Godley’s announcement that OUSD already has plans to hold a July 22nd Special Session and reception to appoint Drier as the next OUSD Superintendent.

The OUSD Trustees are being greeted by a report in the Tuesday June 25th Greeley Tribune that the women apparently involved in the explosive District 6 work-time affair with soon-to-be Greeley Central High School Principal Mark Rangel was also married and also worked for District 6 as a classified employee in a district Special Education program. The woman was not identified in the Tribune. The paper reported District 6 sources have confirmed that the women also resigned on Monday.

The affair story shocked the close-nit community not only because of the work-time sexual nature aspect, but because Rangel was a local icon as the story broke on the heels of the reports on the pending departure of Superintendent Dreier. Rangel was a product of the District 6 schools and his three children also attend District 6 schools, including the middle school Rangel was principal at when the affair apparently started. As the affair story broke, District 6 Superintendent Renae Dreier, who is in line to become the OUSD Superintendent, and other District 6 officials continued to treat the story as a personnel matter, refusing to comment. The Tribune reports that the only statement issued by District 6 on the matter was that an interim principal would be announced and the process for finding a replacement would begin in the fall. The Tribune article went on to state: “District 6 Superintendent Renae Dreier and school board president Bruce Broderius both declined to comment about Rangel's resignation.”

Residents of a local apartment complex were responsible for alerting District 6 officials to the work-time affair in two letters. They reported two years ago a man and women began meeting during the day at a vacant apartment in the complex. The residents thought they may have a prostitution ring in their complex. They followed the couple and determined it was Rangel, then a District 6 middle school principal and another district employee. As the affair continued, the residents began documenting the rendezvous. The Tribune reports that the apartment residents reported that Rangel and the women “met numerous times -- sometimes twice a day and sometimes on nights and weekends” and were able to document 34 meetings between the District 6 administrator and employee during school hours between January and April 2008. It was the work hour rendezvous that the residents apparently resented as taxpayers that prompted the letters to District 6.

The Greeley School Board had a regular meeting scheduled for Monday June 23rd the day the Rangel story broke. In a separate report on that meeting, the Tribune reported that there was no public discussion of Rangel’s resignation or of Dreier leaving for OUSD. However in the Greeley Board’s Executive Session (equivalent to California’s Closed Session), the Tribune reports the Greeley Board did discuss the “personal issues of an unnamed employee”. The Greeley Board did pass next year’s $179 million budget which was balanced for the first time in two years without dipping into the district’s emergency reserves. Classroom cuts and thirty-five certified staff positions were eliminated to balance the budget.

The Greeley Tribune is reporting that Greeley Superintendent Dr. Renae Dreier “was not immediately available for comment” after the Tribune broke the story about Greeley’s Central High School Principal Mark Rangel resigning early Monday June 23rd. Later in the day it came to light in a printed statement by Rangel that he resigned because of an extra-marital affair.

The Tribune reports that the Greeley District 6 Board and Superintendent Renae Dreier became aware of the affair last week in letters from the community concerned that the affair was taking place during working hours. The Tribune further reports that the Drier administration confronted Rangel with the allegations over the weekend.

Rangel is a product of Greeley schools and a graduate of Central High School. He had just been appointed in April to the principal position at Central H.S. beginning in the Fall. Rangel served seven years as the principal of Heath Middle School in Greeley, which ironically uses the same slogan as OUSD's Orange High School: "Once a Panther, Always a Panther!” Rangel is married with three children.

The Greeley Board of Education is scheduled for a regular meeting on Monday, June 23rd. It will be their first meeting since OUSD announced that Greeley Superintendent Dr. Dreier will be the new OUSD Superintendent. OUSD Trustees are scheduled to start a controversial visit to Greeley the next day, Tuesday June 24th. The OUSD trip has been criticized as a “junket” by the community watchdog group, the Greater Orange Community Group. Despite the fact-finding trip this week, Orange Unified Superintendent Dr. Godley made the announcement at the June 23rd OUSD Board Meeting that Drier will be appointed at a Special Board Meeting on July 22rd, 2008.

The Greeley District 6 scandal stands in sharp contrast to OUSD’s last sex scandal at El Modena High School when then principal Brent Bailey was arrested during Winter Break allegedly for soliciting an undercover police officer in a park restroom. In light of an arrest of an administrator OUSD Superintendent Godley and the OUSD Board took immediate action and communication with the community.

Friday, June 20, 2008

DREIER WOULD FORFEIT COLORADO BENEFITS IN MOVE TO OUSD

SPECIAL REPORT by Orange Net News /O/N/N/

The Tribune News of Greeley, Colorado is reporting that Superintendent Dr. Renae Dreier of Greeley Schools District 6 has not told local district officials if she will take the Orange Unified Superintendent’s job if offered to her. OUSD officials have reported that she is the only “final candidate” and OUSD Board Trustees are planning a controversial visit to the Greeley area to investigate Dreier further. What that expensive trip will yield is probably what the June 20th Tribune headline on the latest Dreier story is “Dreier has her supporters and critics”.

In addition, the story reports that Greeley District 6 Board of Directors President Dr. Bruce Broderius states that Dreier would forfeit some benefits by leaving the district. Her original contract ends July 1st, but she was granted a one-year extension in May 2008. Dreier is currently paid $175,000 a year which is high by Colorado standards. Retiring OUSD Superintendent Thomas Godley currently makes $256,000 after several rounds of pay hikes granted to him by a split OUSD Board (the last pay increases coming just weeks before he announced his retirement).

Drier had worked in Colorado since 2006. California state records show that in June of 2007 she renewed the three California teaching credentials she holds: a multiple subject (K-12); single subject for English, History/Social Studies; and an Administrative Credential. Records show she obtained her Clear California Teaching Credential in 1986. The three credentials are renewable in 2012.

Despite information, Dreier Reading First Consultant Booster Greeley supporters of Dreier generally give her credit for moving the struggling district on the right direction in the age of No Child Left Behind (NCLB)accountability. Her unwavering devotion to the NCLB system did leave her open to criticisms from many in the area. That devotion also apparently led Dreier to blindly accept one of the most controversial and expensive components of the NCLB, the billion dollar federal boondoggle called Reading First just as the controversial program received admonishment under scrutiny from federal officials staring in 2006.

President George W. Bush had insisted on the Reading First program be included in the original NCLB federal legislation. A hold over of his days as Texas governor, the Reading First program has many Bush family and friends associated with the big money making program. Orginally listed by the U.S. Department of Education as based on “scientific practices” the most recent U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Educational Services called the program “ineffective”.

NCLB co-sponsor and chairman of the Senate Education Committee Sen. Ted Kennedy is a long time critic of the Reading First program. In a widely circulated quote from Kennedy about the program and the criticial US Department of Education Report, the educational leader said:"The Bush administration has put cronyism first and the reading skills of our children last, and this report shows the disturbing consequences."

In 2006, when Dreier had come to Colorado, the U.S. Department of Education Inspector General John Higgins in a widely circulated report in education circles reported that federal officials and private contractors with ties to publishers had advised educators in several states to buy Reading First program material from those publishers. Just days before the Higgins Report was released in 2006 the close Bush family friend and Reading First Director Chris Doherty resigned. The Higgins Report included disclosure of a number of emails from Doherty referring to private contractors and other educators who favored alternatives to the Reading First program as competitors to the Reading First approach (which later was proven ineffective) as “dirtbags” who were “trying to crash our party”. That party cost US taxpayers over a billion dollars and Greeley District 6 students at least two years of “effective” reading education.

Ironically, outgoing OUSD Superintendent Godley, while not addressing Reading First directly, has been a vocal critic of many aspects of NCLB.

To see all of the Tribune story, follow the link at the top of this page to the Greater Orange News Service the Orange or Villa Park TOPIX page and CLICK ON .

Thursday, June 19, 2008

OUSD’s new community mantra should be…“No Dreier Junkets…No Dreier Excuses”

Metro VIEWSGiving voice to the Greater Orange Communities

OUSD’s new community mantra should be…“No Dreier Junkets…No Dreier Excuses”

by the Greater Orange Community Group

You may have heard, California is in a budget crisis, and because of that, so is Orange Unified. The response at the state level is the Democratic controlled California State Legislature and the Republican Governor are battling it out over education, gambling money and taxes. This of course again makes the state budget late, again making budget planning for cities and local agencies an impossible wait-and-see game. The response at OUSD…classroom size increases, program cuts, staff reductions, a 6% retirement buyout (over $15,000 a month alone for the retiring Dr. Thomas Godley) and of course now…a JUNKET at tax payers expense to “visit” the Colorado district of the “only finalist” for the OUSD Superintendent job… Dr. Renae Dreier of Greeley, Colorado. And we thought this time the OUSD Trustees were about to get things right…prepare for the Dreier Junket.

The OUSD Trustees and Dr. Godley’s administration has long tried to pattern itself after private business (hence the failed Godley From Good to Great slogan). Just imagine the absurdity of corporate headhunter raiders for one Fortune 100 business, let us say Ford Motor Company, stealing away the President and CEO of General Motors. Imagine the response of the GM Board of Directors as the Ford Board of Directors expects to visit GM Headquarters…just to check things out. Clearly the Dreier Junket has no parallel in CEO America.

To put it in another way, what happens when your across-the-country in-laws decide to visit California after years of being on the other end of the continent? As you put your best foot forward with obligatory amusement park visits, you avoid introducing them to that nosey neighbor who talks trash about you around the neighborhood. You also avoid bringing them to visit the local cousins with the wife that loves to publicly broadcast all your families’ warts to all who will listen. Like that in-law visit, a public visit to “investigate” the “final candidate” is a shameful waste of OUSD Educational Tax dollars. The Dreier Junket is unnecessary.

A check with Travelocity shows that a roundtrip flight (United Airlines from Orange County to Denver) plus a hotel (Hilton Garden) in downtown Denver is $1256 per person for travel Tuesday June 26- Friday June 29th (links below for less expensive Greenley hotels i.e. Super 8). That of course does not include food expenses, a rental car, gas…you get the picture…did we mention that California and OUSD are in a budget crisis? The Dreier Junket is a waste of local educational tax resources.

So what is a Board of Education to do to make sure the “final candidate” is the one? In the electronic age of private email and cell phones, there are clearly provided alternatives to the expensive and unneeded Dreier Junket and probably will be more fruitful than a whirlwind community tour at OUSD Taxpayer expense. As a public service and trying to save The Greater Orange Communities thousands of dollars during the current budget crisis (and with an eye toward the November 2008 election and the Freedom of Information Act) we are providing the emails and telephone of Greater Greeley Colorado’s movers and shakers:

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Orange Unified announced that it had selected Dr. Renae Dreier as the OUSD Board of Education’s final candidate for the next OUSD Superintendent. Dreier is currently the Superintendent of Weld County School District Six based in the Greeley- Evans communities of Colorado. The OUSD Board announcement that it would visit Dreier’s district has created another local budget furor. The watchdog Greater Orange Community Group in an email to the community characterized the planned OUSD Trustee trip to Colorado a “junket” and “more wasteful spending on personal perks during a budget crisis”. the group criticized the OUSD Board for being “wasteful” with educational tax dollars in light of recent OUSD budget cuts to class size reductions, the OUSD library staff, and the continued political situation in Sacramento that has not produced California state budget yet, as well as OUSD plans to ask the community for a Bond measure in November.

Two years ago District 6 had been added to the Colorado Department of Education’s accreditation “watch” list for low student achievement, the largest district in the state to be on the dreaded list. Following two years of improved student achievement, Dreier made a very public plea to the state to remove the district from the “watch” list ahead of the five-year period. Dreier made her plea in a letter made public to the state after the most recent Colorado state testing results of the CSAP. Dreier stated that in the 27 state tested indicators, District 6 “only dropped in three”, improved in 14 and stayed the same in 10. The state did remove District 6 from the list based on performance in “weighted indices”. Aside from on-going student achievement issues, the district is still dealing with the largest drop-out rate in the county. In addition, the district went to negotiation impasse with it’s the teacher’s association resulting in mandated federal mediation needed to settle the contract issues late last year.

Previously Dreier served as in 2003 as Superintendent of the New Millennium Partnership (NMP) in Northern California. The NMP was made up of districts that shared a superintendent of schools: Redding Unified; Shasta Union; Igo-Ino-Platina Union, and French Gluch-Whiskeytown School District. Prior to her appointment as NMP Superintendent, Dreier served as principal of Sequoia Middle School in Redding Unified and as a deputy superintendent. She began her education career as a teacher for nine years in Gateway Unified School District and received her doctorate in educational leadership from USC in 2000. Her pay in 2007-2008 as District 6 Superintendent was $175,000.

North of Denver and east of Ft. Collins, Colorado, Weld County District 6 School District serves 18,500 students and traces its history to 1864 as the Latham-East Poudre District 6 School District. Later as the Evans District 15 School District the district built the first high school in Colorado, Meeker School. The current District 6 School District was established in 1960 after taking combining with the District 15 schools. The ethnic make-up of the district is 52% Hispanic, 42% white. The 33 schools (17 elementary, 5 middle schools, 3 high schools, 3 alternative schools) employ 1280 teachers and 54 administrators. The Central Office staff and support is 500 employees. The district also includes four private charter schools. Forty nine percent of the students are eligible for reduced and free lunches. General Fund Budget expenditures totaled $103 million.

“Success, No Excuses” mantraDreier like Godley had established a district strategic plan. Called Reaching for Excellence, the plan was in response to the district being placed on the accreditation watch list by the Colorado Department of Education. The plan used the mantra “Success, no excuses”. The plan includes a community communications plan and is credited with helping the district get off the watch list earlier than anticipated.

Dreier will be the second women to serve as OUSD Superintendent. The Orange USD Recalled Board hired OUSD Superintendent Barbara Van Otterloo to replace ousted OUSD Superintendent Dr. Robert French. Shortly after the Orange Recall replaced the OUSD Recall Board, Van Otterloo “retired” and was replaced by her predecessor, Dr. French. After his second retirement from OUSD, Superintendent French was replaced by current OUSD Superintendent Dr. Thomas Godley. A hire date of August 1st for Dreier is anticipated. The June 19th OUSD Board meeting has Consent Agenda 14 H (Page 30) extending OUSD Superintendent Dr. Thomas Godley’s job from his retirement date of June 30th until a new superintendent starts, or either side gives the other a three day noticeDistrict 6 Strategic Plan CLICK ON:PLAN

Villa Park community leaders push for a November 2008 OUSD Facilities Bond

Failing to get private funding and faced with the prospect of the demolition of the two oldest buildings in Villa Park, the city’s community leaders presented the Orange Unified School Board at their June 5th meeting a petition of approximately two-hundred names of Villa Park residents, community activists, and political leaders dedicating themselves to a November 2008 OUSD facilities bond if the bond included the $3 million dollars plus to restore the original historic, but now dilapidated, Villa Park School Buildings. The proposed Bond move was stunning in its implications because in the voting on the last two Measure A Bond Proposals the fiscally conservative citizens of Villa Park rejected the proposals at a rate that ensured the defeat of both facility bond measures.

While the OUSD Trustees were visibly pleased with the proposal, faced with a short timeline to place a bond measure on the ballot, they cautiously voted to delay the agenda item to demolition the historic buildings until discussions on the level of commitment of the Villa Park community leaders could be held.

The OUSD Board had two items on the June 5 Agenda dealing with the Villa Park Historic School Buildings. First on the agenda was an item to approve an OUSD commissioned Environmental Impact Report (EIR) that would legally clear the way to demolish the historic structures. At the meeting a number of Villa Park community members spoke against the proposed demolition including Orange County Supervisor Bill Campbell. The supervisor, who lives in Villa Park, brought an offer of $100,000 in county matching funds for saving the buildings. Villa Park Councilmember Richard Ulmer also spoke in favor of preserving the buildings. A second agenda item on the buildings was an item to approve the OUSD Staff request to demolish the buildings.

Villa Park Trustee Kathy Moffat tried to get the OUSD Staff to explain why the EIR was needed. However, the OUSD Staff and the EIR Consultant failed to explain that the OUSD Staff had started the legally required EIR process in order to demolish the buildings. The OUSD Staff had clearly stated the goal of removing the buildings in the agenda items leading up to the agenda item approving the EIR. OUSD Trustee Steve Rocco called for a roll-call vote on the EIR approval question that had Rocco and Trustee Rick Ledesma voting not to approve the EIR and Trustees Kim Nichols, Kathy Moffat, Wes Poutsma and Lissa Smith voting to approve the EIR (Trustee John Ortega was absent).

After voting to approve the EIR, the discussion moved to the vote for the buildings demolition. Even without the Villa Park Bond Petition proposal, it appeared that some of the trustees were not ready to vote to demolish the buildings. The Villa Park Bond Proposal clearly had an influenced on the discussions. Nichols referred to the historic structures as “phenomenal buildings” and praised the passion of the community members who have worked years to save the buildings. Moffat reminded the audience that the OUSD Board had not made a “mindless rush to demolish the buildings” as she reviewed the years of failed private attempts to raise money to restore the buildings. Commenting that if “names on a petition, or desires or wishes” were all it took to restore the buildings “it would have been done”. Moffat stated “It’s the money not the will”. Moffat cautiously endorsed the idea of the Villa Park Bond Petition Proposal but questioned by signing the petition, what was the real commitment of those people toward passing and working for a new facilities bond.

Trustee Rick Ledesma called the direction of the discussions a “new life” for the buildings and further commented “I hope we can come together”. Rocco labeled the process “political” and predicted that a facilities Bond Measure connected to the historic buildings would fail. It was Trustee Lissa Smith that best summed up the obvious excited feelings of many in the community who had watched two OUSD Facilities Bonds die over petty politics and conservative tax ideologues over the prospect of a truly unified effort at a third facilities bond.

An exuberant Smith literally shouted out her unrestrained support for the Villa Park Bond Petition. Admitting to Rocco that yes, the previous Bond campaigns had been political, Smith retorted that the Villa Park Bond Petition idea presented an “unbelievable, unimaginable opportunity to partner together”. As evidence of the breakthrough of a community working together, an enthusiastic Smith related that she and Villa Park Mayor Brad Reese spoke for the first time ever over the Villa Park Bond Petition possibilities. Relating that the two are “different persuasions” (Smith is a Democrat and Resse a Republican) Smith stated she was at first a little frightened at the prospects of a dialogue with Resse about the bond proposal. Smith went on to glow about how well the two got along and how great it was to speak with Reese and at the prospect of working together. In the end the OUSD Trustees voted 5-1 (Rocco/No; Ortega /Absent) to postpone a vote on demolition until talks with the community can proceed over a possible Bond issue. August is the deadline for the November ballot.

Consent Agenda Items not so automatic at June 5th MeetingTrustee Rick Ledesma continued his longstanding refusal to approve anything having to do with the Santiago Charter Revocation Report law firm of Miller, & Brown and Dannis. Ever since the controversial Santiago Charter Revocation Report was written by Miller, Brown and Dannis, Ledesma has asked to vote on the contracts for the firm separately and has always voted against doing business with them. Ledesma again pulled items related to the firm from the consent agenda to vote against them.

Trustee John Ortega (absent from the June 5th meeting due to conflicts with his employment as an Orange County Deputy Sheriff) had request to be paid for missing the May 22nd OUSD Board meeting because of conflicts with his work schedule. In a rare parliamentary move, Rocco pulled the item and asked for legal clarification of paying a trustee for missing a meeting due to “work”. Staff gave information that legally pay could be given for missed meetings due to “hardship”. The resolution in question (Agenda page 72) stated that “the absence due to hardship was deemed acceptable to the Board”. In the end after discussion of “employment” obligations and “hardship”, the Board vote was a 3-3 tie with the pay being denied (Rocco, Ledesma, Moffat-NO/ Nichols, Smith, Poutsma-YES/Ortega-absent).

Greater Orange News Service site unblocked by OUSD Trustee Steve Rocco complained that he was unable to retrieve news items sent to his district email by the Orange Communication System (OCS) because OUSD had blocked the site. About six months ago OUSD did block the Greater Orange News Service site from being accessed by OUSD employees on the OUSD server. Six months ago the OCS responded by providing OUSD email accounts with an alternate link to the Greater Orange News Service stories as well as the direct emailing of the stories . In addition to the Greater Orange News Service site, OCS uses an extensive fax, email, subscription, and news service posting system. The OCS stories are carried on the City of Orange and City of Villa Park news pages of the Chicago Times TOPIX News service, as well as Google’s Feedburner and the Blog Net News service. The Greater Orange News Service is routinely rated as one of the top read California internet news sources by the Blog Net News rating system of national and California internet news sources. The Greater Orange News Service news arm, Orange Net News is a member of the Knight Citizen’s News Network and the editors are all individual members of the ELECTRONIC FRONTIER FOUNDATION.

Consent Agenda 14 H (Page 30): After interviewing for a new OUSD superintendent on Friday June 13th, 2008 at the Orange Doubletree Hotel, this item extends OUSD Superintendent Dr. Thomas Godley’s job until a new superintendent starts, or either side gives the other a three day notice.

* The Godley Retirement Bonus presented here is an estimate of the amount in “bonus retirement” accrued since the Superintendent’s retirement on 6/30/08 using the 6% lifetime formula. The actual retirement plan the former OUSD Superintendent opted to take is not public information and the figures presented are only as an estimate of the costs after the OUSD trustees voted against an amendment to exclude Godley from the retirement program The on-going estimated figure is presented as a reminder to the community of the high cost in educational tax dollars the OUSD Board vote to allow the former Superintendent to participate in the 6% retirement incentive cost the OUSD education community. Godley retired from OUSD on June 30, 2008 after he worked for the school district for a little over five years.

**JUNE 8th, 2006 Trustees VOTE to Give OUSD Superintendent the power to APPROVE Travel Requests taking this item OUT of the PUBLIC AGENDA

Total for Watched Tax Dollars approved in 2006: $849,717.00*2006 Consultant Fee Tally: Total $176,4002006 Attorney Fee Tally: Total Approved $655,0002006 Administrative Conference/Travel: Total $ 18,317 ** JUNE 8th, 2006 Trustees VOTE to Give OUSD Superintendent the power to APPROVE OUSD Travel Requests taking this item OUT of the PUBLIC AGENDA

Thursday, June 12, 2008

OUSD Special "Friday the 13th" Meeting to interview superintendent candidates

ORANGE Unified Schools INSIDE

The Orange Unified School Board will hold a Special Meeting on Friday June 13th at the Doubletree Hotel at The Block in Orange. The Friday the 13th meeting will be to interview perspective candidates for the OUSD Superintendent's position which will be vacated on June 30th by retiring OUSD Superentendent Dr. Thomas Godley. The Special Meeting will be a Closed Session for the interviews and will start at 8:00 am.

The Doubletree Hotel is located at the Block of Orange Mall, 100 The City Drive, Orange. Comments before the Board goes into Closed Session will be taken and a report on any action taken in the meeting will be announced before public adjournment.

The Orange Unified School District Board of Trustees will hold a Special Session on Wednesday June 4th to hire the next OUSD Superintendent. The Closed Session meeting will begin at 5:00 pm with public comments followed by adjournment to Closed Session where discussions and apparently the vote to hire a new OUSD Superintendent will take place. The California Brown Act requirements mandate that any decisions made in the Closed Session be reported out in an Open Session following the closed meeting. Current OUSD Superintendent Dr. Thomas Godley’s retirement date is June 30, 2008.

Unlike when Godley was hired, the process for choosing Godley’s successor has been much more public. The current selection process has involved community input and by all accounts multiple candidates. In replacing former Superintendent Robert French, the OUSD Board had initially hired a search firm to find a new superintendent, but then reversed course when Dr. French informed them that was supporting OUSD Assistant Superintendent Dr. Godley for the top administration position. The OUSD Board majority quickly dropped the search and hired Godley. While Godley received unwavering support among the so-called Godley Majority on the OUSD Board (up until his retirement announcement), he never connected in the same way with the community. Rarely visiting school sites and relying on his inner circle, Godley’s background as a number cruncher did not serve him well as the public face and spokesperson of Orange Unified. This was especially evident in ill-fated public decisions dealing with controversial community issues throughout his five year tenure with OUSD.

OUSD TO VOTE TO DEMOLISH VPES HISTORIC BUILDINGSThe following night after hiring a superintendent, the OUSD Board will meet in a regularly scheduled OUSD Board Meeting on Thursday June 5th. Two Action Items, 12 A and 12 B (Agenda pages 3-14) will approve the Villa Park Historical Buildings Environmental Impact Report and a second agenda resolution to demolish the two historic buildings at Villa Park Elementary School. The district administration is expected to act quickly to demolish the buildings once they receive Board approval on Thursday night.

The OUSD Agenda summary on Action Item 12 A states that to demolish the buildings, the OUSD Board “will also need to adopt a statement of overriding considerations indicating that the proposed project outweighs the unavoidable impacts to the historical resources identified in the findings” (OUSD 6/5/08 Agenda page 4).

The EIR findings are summarized in the agenda’s Resolution of Certification. The findings include: “WHEREAS, in order to eliminate the hazard posed by the buildings to the students and staff of Villa Park Elementary School, the District proposes to demolish two historic former school buildings on the campus of Villa Park Elementary School…” (OUSD 6/5/08 Agenda page 6; resolution page 2)

The resolution also lists the “nine alternatives” to demolishing the buildings. OUSD Trustee Kathy Moffat at the May 22nd OUSD Board meeting had pulled from the Consent Item a second billing of $17,000 to the firm responsible for the EIR, the Planning Center. The OUSD Administration reported that the EIR grew because of the amount of community input asking for alternatives to the demolition of the buildings. In the end, the EIR makes the case for the demolition of Villa Park’s only historic buildings stating: “however, each one of these scenarios was determined to be undesirable or unfeasible” (OUSD 6/5/08 Agenda page 6).

The resolution also states that OUSD “made available for sale and relocation of the buildings…but no individual, group of individuals, or public agency submitted a bid for the buildings…” ( OUSD 6/5/08 Agenda page 7).

The second resolution calling for the demolition of the buildings reports the cost of restoration at $3.5 million (OUSD 6/5/08 Agenda page 11) and reports that OUSD “has exhausted all options”. The final page of the resolution has the OUSD Board of Education voting to authorize Godley to demolish the buildings: “The District Superintendent or designee is authorized to remove the subject buildings from the Villa Park Elementary School campus…” (OUSD 6/5/08 Agenda page 13).

May 22nd OUSD School Board Meeting Recap “Better than January, but still bad” - OUSD Administration on May Revise

OUSD Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Jon Archibald reported on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s May budget update and projection revisions, popularly known as the May Revise. Archibald presented OUSD budget updates based on the newest figures. The updated OUSD budget uses $20.1 million dollars of “one time reserve money” already in the OUSD budget to help balance the district’s budget over the next three years. OUSD Trustee Kathy Moffat questioned Archibald about the source of the $20.1 in funding found in the budget. Archibald explained that the money came from a variety of savings on one-time fund money. These include temporarily suspending payments for future health care liabilities, and such things as a $3 million “overage” in the “budgeted” fund to pay teachers contracted salaries (the fund does not fully get depleted every year because when teachers call in for substitutes, use other funding sources for pay outside the “budgeted” salary money fund, or go on leave those budgeted monies are saved in this budget fund). While Archibald scores points for budget transparency, the fact that the OUSD budget has budget funds with $20 million in “rainy day” monies available over three years plays into the often repeated refrain from the district’s employee and community groups of hidden budget funds. The Godley administration has repeatedly “found” money in the OUSD budget to meet shortfalls and other budgeting priorities that the community has brought pressure to save. One example is when Godley facing a huge community outcry “found” $7,500 to keep the OUSD school board cable broadcasts to the community after insisting there was no money to continue the broadcasts.

Moffat and another skeptical trustee, Lissa Smith, questioned the administrators over the possible scenarios yet to play out in Sacramento over this year’s budget. Dr. Godley, often a critic of the Governor, summarized Schwarzenegger’s recent dual proposals to balance the state budget with gambling revenues ( the lottery and Indian gamming) as “No Chips Left Behind” budgeting.

INSIDE the OUSD Agenda June 5th,2008Six more administration positions will be filled in Closed Session. The OUSD Board will honor the 2008 OUSD High School Valedictorians and Highest Academic Achievers for outstanding scholastic achievement (Agenda page 2). • OUSD Agenda Page 22-23: $40,000 for Santiago Charter Revocation Report law firm Miller, Brown & Dannis for an open purchase order for 7/1/08 through 6/30/09.• OUSD Agenda Page 24: $200,000 for OUSD Law firm Parker & Covert for open purchase orders 7/01/08- 12/31/08.• OUSD Agenda Page 61: $150,000 for OUSD Law firm Parker & Covert for open purchase order for 2008-2009 school year for Special Education matters

INSIDE the OUSD BudgetHalf-way through 2008 and for the first time in three years, the EDUCATIONAL TAX DOLLARS WATCH amount for the current year has surpassed the pervious year’s spending. The total amount on the WATCH list for the entire year of 2007: $704,090. The 2008 new June WATCH list total is $704,500, surpassing last years total by $410 with six months of the year left to go. But then when the OUSD Board of Trustees is paying $6,500 in educational tax dollars for a 55 minute speech, things start to add up! So as Dr. Godley noted that the Governor keeps looking to gambling interests to get the state out of the budget fix, Godley’s administration continues to look to Consultants to spend the educational dollars the state seems not to have.

*JUNE 8th, 2006 Trustees VOTE to Give OUSD Superintendent the power to APPROVE Travel Requests taking this item OUT of the PUBLIC AGENDA

Total for Watched Tax Dollars approved in 2006: $849,717.00*2006 Consultant Fee Tally: Total $176,4002006 Attorney Fee Tally: Total Approved $655,0002006 Administrative Conference/Travel: Total $ 18,317 ** JUNE 8th, 2006 Trustees VOTE to Give OUSD Superintendent the power to APPROVE OUSD Travel Requests taking this item OUT of the PUBLIC AGENDA

* The Godley Retirement Bonus presented here is an estimate of the amount in “bonus retirement” accrued since the Superintendent’s retirement on 6/30/08 using the 6% lifetime formula. The actual retirement plan the former OUSD Superintendent opted to take is not public information and the figures presented are only as an estimate of the costs and as on-going reminder to the community of the high cost in educational tax dollars the OUSD Board vote to allow the former Superintendent to participate in the retirement incentive after the Godley had already announced his retirement. Godley retired from OUSD on June 30, 2008 after he worked for the school district for a little over five years.